Carton casing apparatus

ABSTRACT

A conveyor conveys a row of pairs of cartons to a casing apparatus which marshals the cartons into a tier for positioning into a case. A pivoting mechanism pivots the first pair of cartons at right angles to the conveyor onto a horizontal carrier and a pusher pushes subsequent pairs of cartons transversely from the row onto the conveyor. The pivoting mechanism resiliently retains a pair of cartons during the pivoting operation. The tier of cartons is positioned below a gripping head having clamps actuated simultaneously to grip the cartons upon downward movement of the gripping head. The gripping head has one pair of clamps at right angles to the remaining clamps and a linkage is provided to actuate all of the clamps simultaneously.

[111 3,820,302 June 28, 1974 United States Patent [191 Doran et al.

[ CARTON CASING APPARATUS Primary ExaminerRobert L. Spruill Attorney,Agent, or FirmSmythe & Moore [57] ABSTRACT A conveyor conveys a row ofpairs of cartons to a cas- [73] Assignee: Windor, Incorporated, Danbury,

Conn.

ing apparatus which marshals the cartons into a tier for positioninginto a case. A pivoting mechanism pivots the first pair of cartons atright angles to the conveyor onto a horizontal carrier and a pusherpushes subsequent pairs of cartons transversely from the row onto theconveyor. The pivoting mechanism resiliently retains a pair of cartonsduring the pivoting operation. The tier of cartons is positioned below agripping head having clamps actuated simultaneously to grip the cartonsupon downward movement of the gripping head. The gripping head has onepair of clamps at right angles to the remaining clamps and a linkage isprovided to actuate all of the clamps simultaneously.

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15 Claims, 14 Drawing Figures 3,30l,376 1/1967 Winter et al. 198/31 AB3,367,518 2/l968 53/159 CARTON CASING APPARATUS The present inventionrelates to an apparatus for casing pairs of cartons, more particularly,to a mechanism for pivoting predetermined pairs of cartons and to agripping head for clamping the cartons for movement into a case.

A wide variety of products including dairy products and juices arepacked in containers, such as paper cartons, which are then assembledinto a case for shipment. The individual containers or cartons are ofvarious capacities. In the sale of milk, it has been found desirable topackage milk in half-gallon cartons but to sell them in some instancesby the gallon by assembling two half-gallon cartons together in a twinpack. A plurality of these cartons are then positioned in a tier orlayer and deposited into a case. In general practice it has been foundexpedient to package eight twin-packed half-gallon cartons of milk intoa case normally holding nine single cartons. The eight cartons arearranged in pairs with three pairs facing in one direction and the otherpair adjacent the three pairs but at right angles thereto.

The apparatus for easing the cartons generally comprises a conveyoralong which the cartons are conveyed in a row. A suitable mechanism isthen provided for assembling the cartons into a suitable pattern fordeposition into a case. In casing cartons in the eight-carton pattern asdescribed above, a pivoting mechanism is provided to pivot the firstpair of cartons at right angles onto a carrier and the next succeedingsix cartons are pushed in pairs transversely from the conveyor onto thecarrier adjacent the pivoted pair of cartons.

It has been found that when assembling the cartons in the eight-cartonpattern with the pairs of cartons not being attached, the second cartonin the turning or pivoting mechanism tended to walk out" of the turnerbecause of the centrifugal force exerted during the turning operation.When pairs of cartons are attached by a handle, the weight of the firstcarton in the turning mechanism tended to pull the second carton intoposition but not always.

When the eight cartons have been assembled in a pattern wherein one pairis at right angles to the remaining three pairs of cartons, this tier ofcartons is then moved a point beneath a griping head mechanism whichgrips all of the cartons and deposits them in a case positionedtherebelow. The gripping mechanism essentially comprises a plurality ofclamps disposed to conform to the pattern of pairs of cartons. It isessential that all of these clamps be actuated simultaneously but thatthe mechanism for carrying out this operation be as simple and reliableas possible. Difficulties have previously been encountered in providinga suitable arrangement of clamps for securely gripping the cartons todeposit them in a casing.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an improvedapparatus for easing cartons in a pattern of pairs.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a gripping-headassembly having a simple but effective arrangement for actuating aplurality of clamps disposed on the gripping head in an arrangement tocorrespond to the pattern of the pairs of cartons.

In one aspect of the present invention, an apparatus for easing pairs ofcartons within a case may comprise a frame having a loading tabletherein. A container is mounted on the frame for feeding continuously asingle row of cartons onto the loading table. A pusher is mounted on theframe before which the row of cartons passes and pushes pairs of cartonsonto a horizontally reciprocal carrier mounted on the frame. Means areprovided adjacent the conveyor for pivoting certain predetermined pairsof cartons onto the horizontal carrier at a right angle to the directionof the conveyor. A retaining means can be provided for preventing thepivoted cartons from walking out" of the pivoting mechanism because ofcentrifugal force. Actuating means cause the pusher to push succeedingpairs of cartons transversely of the row predetermined distances ontothe conveyor so as to form a tier or pattern of pairs of cartonscomprising one pivoted pair and three pushed pairs of cartons. The tierof assembled pairs of cartons is then moved to a point beneath avertically reciprocable gripping head mounted on the frame which has aplurality of clamps thereon to grip the pairs of cartons and depositthem in a case therebelow.

Other objects, advantages, and features of the present invention willbecome apparent from the accompanying description and drawings, whichare merely exemplary.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of the casing apparatus according to thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a pair of cartons clamped together by atwin-pack handle;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the pivoting mechanism at the end of theconveyor for pivoting a pair of cartons at right angles to the conveyor;

FIG. 4 is view similar to that of FIG. 3 but showing the pivotingmechanism in its pivoted position;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to that of FIG. 4 but showing a plurality ofpairs of cartons pushed from the conveyor to form a tier of cartons withthe pivoted pair of cartons;

FIG. 6 is an overall perspective view of the horizontal platform andcarrier which moves a tier of cartons beneatha gripping head assembly;

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the pivoting mechanism of FIGS. 3 to 5 butin a larger scale to show details of the mechanism;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line 8-8 of FIG. 6 showingthe pusher tabs in the operatable position;

FIG. 9 is a view of the right-hand portion of FIG. 8 and showing thepusher tabs in retracted position;

FIG. 10 is a partial elevational view of the gripping means for thepivoted pair of cartons taken in the direction 10-10 of FIG. 14;

FIG. 11 is an end elevational view taken in the direction of the line11-11 of FIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken along the line 12-12 of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a front elevational view of the gripper-head assembly; and vFIG. 14 is a side elevational view of the gripper head as shown in FIG.13.

Proceeding next to the drawings wherein like reference symbols indicatethe same parts throughout the various views, a specific embodiment ofthe present invention will be described in detail.

The casing machine is an improvement over the easing machine disclosedin U. S. Pat. No. 3,273,304, issued Sept. 20, 1966, and embodies most ofthe structural features of this machine. It is therefore considered notnecessary to describe each component of the present machine in detailsince these components are'adequately described in the aforementionedpatent.

As may be seen in FIG. 1, the casing apparatus of the present inventionis indicated generally at and comprises a frame 11 having a loadingtable which may be seen in FIG. 6, which may comprise a portion of thecontinuous straight-line conveyor 13 upon which pairs of cartons, suchas that shown at 14 in FIG. 2, are conveyed. The pair of cartons 14comprise half-gallon containers of milk which are attached together by atwinpack handle 15. The function of the present machine is not limitedto attached pairs of cartons but can also be used for casing pairs ofcartons wherein the individual containers are separate from each other.The casings usually can hold nine such cartons or uneven numbers.

A pusher 16 actuated by a hydraulic cylinder 17 is positioned adjacentthe conveyor 13 so that the row of cartons conveyed therealong passes infront of the pusher.

A pivoting mechanism 18 is positioned adjacent the conveyor 13 and has apair of spaced resilient arms 19 disposed over the conveyor so as toreceive a pair of containers conveyed therealong. The arms 19 aremounted on a bracket 20 which is pivotally supported on a shaft 21 andis attached to a gear 22 which meshes with a sector gear 23 pivoted at24. The sector gear 23 is mounted on a bracket 25 which has a downwardlydepending lug 26 received in slot 27 in block 28 attached on the end ofrod 29 extending from hydraulic cylinder 30. The block 28 moves betweenguide rails 31 so that actuation of the hydraulic cylinder pivots thesector gear 23 which in turn pivots gear 22 and pivots the arms 19 tothe position as shown in FIG. 4. The hydraulic cylinder 30 is actuatedin sequence so as to pivot every fourth pair of cartons ninety degreesinto the position as shown in FIG. 4. By pivoting every fourth pair ofcartons, a tier of pairs of cartons will be formed, such as shown inFIG. 5, having an even number of cartons.

As a pair of cartons is pivoted, the centrifugal force thereon may besufficient to cause the pair to walk out or move away from the pivotwhich is undesirable. In order to prevent such movement, a retainingguide 75 (FIGS. 4, 5), which can be a spring steel strip,-is pi'voted at76 so that the retaining guide can be swung to the position seen in FIG.4 and can keep the cartons A in the proper position. After this iscompleted, fluidoperated motor 77 is actuated so as to move theretaining guide out of the way of the next pairs of cartons B, C and D,as seen in FIG. 5.

The pivoted pair of cartons A is pivoted onto a platform of horizontallyspaced bars 32, the platform comprising a series of stationary bars 33intermeshed with a series of four reciprocable bars 35. The stationarybars 33 are interconnected by a horizontal member 33A supported by theframe 11. The reciprocable bars 35, which define a comb and whichfunction to push the tier of cartons from the stationary bars 33, areinterconnected by horizontal bar assemblies 36 and 36A which areconstrained in their reciprocable travel by guide rails 37A.

At the entrance of the platform 32, vertical tabs 38 (FIGS. 6 and 8) areconnected to a crossmember 39 of the horizontal bar assembly 36, theends of which are attached to hydraulic cylinders 41A for sequentialmovement of the tabs 38. At the opposite end of the platform is a stop47 connected to the horizontal bar assembly 36A. The stop 47 is at aslight angle from the vertical and coincides with four depending members47A, which in conjunction with the stop 47 also. act as a guide inconjunction with the guide plates 41 in the downward travel of thecontainers to the conveyor 70.

The tabs 38 are in a down position while the containers are beingtransferred from the conveyor 13 onto the horizontal platform, and intheir progressive travel along the length of the platform, they finallyabut against the stop 47.

At the instant of forward movement of the comb assembly 35, the tabs 38are raised to an upward position and abutting the tiered cartons,transferring the cartons to a point beneath a gripping-head assembly.

The reciprocable movement of the comb assembly is effected by means of afluid pressure actuating cylinder 17A.

There may also be opposed hand adjustable guide plates 37 mounted onframe 11 guiding the tiers of cartons to a position under thegripper-head assembly indicated generally at 40.

The gripper-head assembly 40 is mounted for vertical links 46 to ahorizontal link 48 which in turn is connected to a link 49interconnected by link 50 to a horizontal bar 51 attached to the end ofrod 52 from the actuating cylinder 43.

In a similar manner, the rods 44b, d, and f are connected by links 53 toa horizontal link 54 whose end is connected to a link 55 connected by anintermediate link 56 to the other end of the horizontal link 51.

Upon actuation of the cylinder 43 (FIG. 1 piston 52 (FIGS. 13, 14) willmove outwardly and move rod 51 downwardly (FIG. 13). As a result of thelinkage connection, horizontal rod 48 will move to the left as indicatedby the arrow 57 to pivot its respective clamps in a counterclockwisedirection and the horizontal link 54 will move to the right as indicatedby the arrow58 to move its respective clamps in the clockwise directionso that the respective pairs of clamps will engage the top of the pairsof cartons.

In order to clamp the pivoted pair of cartons A, there is provided atthe rear of the gripping head a horizontal fixed bar 60 which is atright angles to rods 44. An additional rod 61 is pivotally mounted inthe frame and has a clamp 62 extending therefrom which is engageablewith the fixed bar 60. An actuating rod 63 extends from rod 44d as maybe seen in FIGS. 11 and 12 and is received in a slot 64 in a bracket 65mounted on one end of therod 44d. Thus, pivoting movement of the rod 44dwill cause the bracket 65 to pivot in a clockwise direction and willmove the rod 63 downwardly to bring the clamp 62 in clamping engagementagainst the stationary bar 60. It is therefore apparent that all of theclamps will be actuated simultaneously.

At the same time that the clamps are actuated, the gripping head ismoved downwardly to deposit the tier of cartons in a case indicated at70 in FIG. 6.

During the casing operation, the resilient arms 19 of the pivotingmechanism 18 securely retain the containers even if the containers arenot clipped together. The pivoted containers are then deposited inposition A as may be seen in FIG. 5. Subsequent pairs of containers B, Cand D are then pushed into position by the pusher 16. This tier ofcontainers is then moved beneath the gripper head 40 which then movesdownwardly, clamps the containers, and deposits them in a casetherebelow.

It will be understood that various details of constructionnd arrangementof parts may be made without departing from the spirit of the inventionexcept as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

I. In an apparatus for casing pairs of cartons within a case, thecombination of a frame having a loading table thereon, a conveyormounted on said frame for feeding a row of cartons in a predetermineddirection onto said loading table, means for forming a tier of apredetermined number of pairs of cartons including a pusher mounted onsaid frame and before which said row of cartons passes, a horizontallyreciprocable carrier mounted on said frame in position to receive pairsof cartons pushed by said pusher, means for actuating said pusher topush a pair of cartons transversely of said row a predetermined distanceonto said carrier, vertically reciprocable gripping-head means mountedon said frame, and means actuating said carrier for moving a tier of apredetermined number of pairs of cartons to a point beneath saidgripping-head means wherein the improvement comprises means associatedwith said tier forming means for pivoting a pair of cartons onto saidcarrier to a position at right angles to the direction of said conveyor.

2. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said pivoting meanscomprises means for resiliently retaining said pair of cartons.

3. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein there is a retainingguide for inhibiting radially outward movement of a pair of cartonsduring pivoting thereof.

4. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 3 wherein there is an actuatingmeans for said retaining guide to move the retaining guide to anineffective position after a pair of cartons has been pivoted.

5. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 and compris- 6 ing means forsequencing the pivoting of said pivoting means to pivot spacedpredetermined pairs of cartons from said row, the pairs of cartonsbetween said pivoted pairs being pushed by said pusher onto saidcarrier.

6. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 5 and comprising a fluid pressurecylinder for pivoting said pivoting means.

7. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein said resilientretaining means comprises a pair of spaced resilient arms between whichthe pair of cartons is retained during pivoting.

8. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said gripping-headmeans comprises a plurality of clamps corresponding to the plurality ofpairs of pushed cartons and said pair of pivoted cartons.

9. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein the clamps for saidpivoted pair of cartons are at right angles to said other clamps.

10. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 9 and comprising means on saidgripping-head means for actuating all of said clamps simultaneously.

11. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 10 and comprising an actuatingcylinder on said gripping-head means, linkage connected to saidactuating cylinder to close the clamps for the pushed cartons uponactuation of the cylinder, and means interconnecting said pushed cartonclamps and said pivoted carton clamps.

12. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 9 and comprising a plurality ofpairs of pivotable parallel rods, on said gripping-head means, theclamps for the pushed cartons being attached to said rods, and linkagemeans for pivoting each rod of a pair in opposite direction to close andopen the clamps.

13. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 12 and further comprising afixed bar on said gripping-head means at right angles to said parallelrods, an additional rod parallel to said fixed bar and having a clampthereon engageable with said bar in the clamping position to clamp saidpair of pivoted cartons.

14. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 13 and comprising linkage meansbetween one of said pairs of parallel rods and said additional rod toactuate said additional rod simultaneously with said parallel rodswhereby all of said clamps operate together.

15. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 and further comprising meanssupporting said case beneath said gripping-head means to receive a tierof said cartons. l l

1. In an apparatus for casing pairs of cartons within a case, thecombination of a frame having a loading table thereon, a conveyormounted on said frame for feeding a row of cartons in a predetermineddirection onto said loading table, means for forming a tier of apredetermined number of pairs of cartons including a pusher mounted onsaid frame and before which said Row of cartons passes, a horizontallyreciprocable carrier mounted on said frame in position to receive pairsof cartons pushed by said pusher, means for actuating said pusher topush a pair of cartons transversely of said row a predetermined distanceonto said carrier, vertically reciprocable gripping-head means mountedon said frame, and means actuating said carrier for moving a tier of apredetermined number of pairs of cartons to a point beneath saidgripping-head means wherein the improvement comprises means associatedwith said tier forming means for pivoting a pair of cartons onto saidcarrier to a position at right angles to the direction of said conveyor.2. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said pivoting meanscomprises means for resiliently retaining said pair of cartons.
 3. In anapparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein there is a retaining guide forinhibiting radially outward movement of a pair of cartons duringpivoting thereof.
 4. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 3 wherein thereis an actuating means for said retaining guide to move the retainingguide to an ineffective position after a pair of cartons has beenpivoted.
 5. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1 and comprising meansfor sequencing the pivoting of said pivoting means to pivot spacedpredetermined pairs of cartons from said row, the pairs of cartonsbetween said pivoted pairs being pushed by said pusher onto saidcarrier.
 6. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 5 and comprising a fluidpressure cylinder for pivoting said pivoting means.
 7. In an apparatusas claimed in claim 2 wherein said resilient retaining means comprises apair of spaced resilient arms between which the pair of cartons isretained during pivoting.
 8. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1wherein said gripping-head means comprises a plurality of clampscorresponding to the plurality of pairs of pushed cartons and said pairof pivoted cartons.
 9. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein theclamps for said pivoted pair of cartons are at right angles to saidother clamps.
 10. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 9 and comprisingmeans on said gripping-head means for actuating all of said clampssimultaneously.
 11. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 10 andcomprising an actuating cylinder on said gripping-head means, linkageconnected to said actuating cylinder to close the clamps for the pushedcartons upon actuation of the cylinder, and means interconnecting saidpushed carton clamps and said pivoted carton clamps.
 12. In an apparatusas claimed in claim 9 and comprising a plurality of pairs of pivotableparallel rods, on said gripping-head means, the clamps for the pushedcartons being attached to said rods, and linkage means for pivoting eachrod of a pair in opposite direction to close and open the clamps.
 13. Inan apparatus as claimed in claim 12 and further comprising a fixed baron said gripping-head means at right angles to said parallel rods, anadditional rod parallel to said fixed bar and having a clamp thereonengageable with said bar in the clamping position to clamp said pair ofpivoted cartons.
 14. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 13 andcomprising linkage means between one of said pairs of parallel rods andsaid additional rod to actuate said additional rod simultaneously withsaid parallel rods whereby all of said clamps operate together.
 15. Inan apparatus as claimed in claim 1 and further comprising meanssupporting said case beneath said gripping-head means to receive a tierof said cartons.